


Midnight

by petty_labelle



Category: She-Ra and the Princesses of Power (2018)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Catra (She-Ra) Is a Tease, Catra (She-Ra) in a Suit, Catra still a cat, F/F, Fake/Pretend Relationship, New Year's Eve, New Year's Kiss, Not Beta Read
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-28
Updated: 2020-12-28
Packaged: 2021-03-11 01:01:00
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,474
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28356651
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/petty_labelle/pseuds/petty_labelle
Summary: “We can be honest and say we met freshman year. They'll ask when we started dating and we'll say-”Catra finishes, “When the new semester started. You came back with that undercut and all I wanted to do was feel it against the inside of my thighs.”Like she probably planned, Adora gasps. “Catra! You can't say that to my friends!”“Can I say it to you?” Catra whispers, very suggestively, right next to the blonde’s ear.---Adora's friends love trying to set her up. This New Years', she's devised a plan to stop that from happening - paying her bratty classmate to pretend to date her for one night.
Relationships: Adora/Catra (She-Ra)
Comments: 35
Kudos: 295





	Midnight

**Author's Note:**

> i'm supposed to be working on something else but the chapter was dense and i wasn't feeling it. so here's the one-shot fake dating au that i've wanted to write for awhile now. all banged out in one long session. no beta, sorry.
> 
> catra and adora are juniors in college with the occasional class and the same work-study job. two of my favorite versions of catradora are brilliant tease catra and super anxious adora so here's catra flirting while adora's brain explodes.

Adora Gray was the single friend. It wasn’t an identity that she took any pleasure in. She thought of herself as the ‘responsible friend’ or the ‘level-headed friend’. But really those titles tended to go to Bow and Spinnerella. So Adora was the single friend, the one who was always the 3rd or 5th or 7th wheel on hangouts. The one who everyone tried to set up with any random other single queer girl they knew. 

Just this month, Netossa had shown Adora a picture of a random girl in a rugby uniform who she met in class and suggested that they might be cute together. Glimmer had talked up her barista, who had short nails, blue hair, and a rainbow pin. 

None of this mattered because none of them were Ca-. No, none of this mattered because Adora had to focus on classes and basketball and her part-time job at the library and trying to get a summer internship and really anything except dating randos.

That wouldn’t stop her friends, she knew. But she had a decent plan for getting everyone off of her back. Curbing their annoying set-ups, awful dating advice, and sad eyes at game night when she had to join a three-person team.

It is not an ideal plan. The other party is...difficult. Persnickety.

Gods, if Adora calls her co-worker persnickety to her face, she knows she’s getting scratched up. Maybe this plan should wait another day.

No! No time to wait. It’s the last day before winter break so this is the last time she’ll see-

“Catra,” Adora lightly calls, her most genuine smile already in place. 

There’s a short line of kids at the library’s information desk already, but Adora knows from experience that Catra will ignore all of them if she deems something else more interesting.

With a groan, Catra’s blue and gold mismatched eyes glance away from the panicked looking freshman in front of her.

“Gray, you better be here to provide extra coverage,” Catra drawls. She points at the line and raises her voice so that everyone can hear, “Apparently, all of these idiots waited until the last minute to complete their final papers. Like I don’t have other places I could be today, instead of providing answers that you could find _on the internet_!”

Catra probably thinks that’ll drive at least a couple of people away. It doesn’t. She has a bit of a reputation for being extremely helpful even if she’s a nightmare to deal with. Catra’s advice is quick and to the point, which is deeply necessary for a procrastinator. No one’s going to trudge through search results when Catra will just yell the exact books that you need and where to find them in the library. If you’re really lucky, part of her diatribe usually includes suggestions for paper topics. Adora once saw a kid write their entire essay intro just from Catra’s rant on feminism and 1950s Hollywood movies. Being called names is a small price to pay for that kind of help.

This is actually why Catra’s the perfect choice for Adora’s plan. She’s brilliant. She thinks well on her feet. She’s thorough, Adora learned when they were assigned to a class project together. She sadly actually has nowhere else to be, regardless of what she claims. Catra’s mentioned that she has no family. Entrapta seems to be her only friend. All of Horde Hall literally cheered when Entrapta left for winter break, finally able to sleep without worry of being woken up by an explosion at 4am, so Adora knows that she’s not around right now.

“No, I’m not scheduled for today,” Adora responds. “I actually have something to ask you.”

“Yeah? Get in line.” Catra turns to the next person. “What’s your problem, kid?”

Adora talks over the freshman explaining something about the antiquities. “It’s a non-school question. I’m done for the semester.”

“Well, congratulations,” Catra replies sarcastically. “Non-school question?” 

She turns her chair to fully face Adora, soft lips growing into a smirk. Unconsciously, it seems, her clawed hands go to her huge, curly dark brown mane, tussling it into place.

That is just enough to throw Adora off. Maybe this is a bad plan. She had downplayed Catra’s ability to rattle her.

“Uh. Well. I, uh.” Why is her mouth suddenly dry?

The freshman’s eyes are on her now too. Adora glances behind them, and the next few folks in line are also listening. Adora doesn’t do well with an audience.

Catra sighs, breaking her out of her thoughts.

“Shit or get off the pot, Gray,” she says. “Every second we waste is a second closer to a failing grade for everyone here.”

“I need a date for my annual New Years’ Eve party,” Adora admits, trying to lower her voice only for Catra. “Not a romantic thing. Just a...companion for the night.”

She visibly winces when she realizes how that sounds. Catra gets that look in her eyes that usually happens right before she laughs right in Adora’s face.

“Not like that!” she amends quickly. “Just someone so my friends will leave me alone about being single.”

Catra narrows her eyes, smile fading. “So just any warm body?”

“No, it has to be you!” she hopes she doesn't sound too eager. 

The truth is that she and Catra only see each other when they’re working at the library or in class. Adora’s noticed, of course, that Catra is very attractive and has many...pleasing qualities. But she can’t admit any of that to the girl. Catra enjoys chaos a bit too much and giving her more ammo to tease Adora with would be a huge mistake.

“Look,” Adora begins, “I don’t think you have plans that night. It’s here in Bright Moon. We’ll go to the party, have some food and drinks. You can crash the night if you drink too much. Maybe it’ll be fun.”

“This sounds like a date,” Catra points out. She’s clearly starting to see where she can torture Adora. “Are you asking me on a date, Adora Gray? You’ve only known me for 3 years. I thought you moved a lot slower than that.”

Adora tries not to blush. Telling Catra how it took her all of high school to ask out her crush was something she quickly came to regret.

“It’s a favor,” she corrects. “We tell my friends that we’re dating and it helps me out of a bind.”

“And what do I get out of this, Gray? What if I already had plans?”

“I’ll pay you,” Adora offers.

That was a last-ditch plan but she’d saved some money from work just in case. Plus, she’d probably get cash from Glimmer’s parents for Christmas so she would still be able to afford groceries, at least.

“Oh, this is a business opportunity? $500.”

Adora nearly chokes.

“$500 for a few hours, Catra? Be reasonable.”

Catra’s never been reasonable her whole life. She shakes her head slowly, unwilling to listen.

“$200,” Adora counters.

“$250. And you’re gonna help me steal food and booze.”

“$250 and I won’t snitch on you cause my friend Mermista is loaded and won’t miss it. But I’m _not_ helping. Final offer.”

Catra turns to the freshman. “What do you think, kid?”

“Catra! Don’t involve more people!”

“They’re like 18. They clearly have no friends. Who are they going to tell?”

The freshman looks offended. “You seem perfect for each other,” they mutter, bitterly. “Can you just answer my question?”

With a roll of her eyes, Catra scribbles something on a piece of paper and hands it to them.

“There. Next semester, maybe you should bother actually doing the reading.” She dismisses them away with a flick of her claw. “Next asshole who doesn’t care about their GPA!”

The next student steps up, three books already in their hands. Catra tsks.

“I’m not doing a full course review. One question. Don’t be greedy.”

Adora’s just standing there, unsure what to do with herself.

“So…” she interrupts. “You in?”

“Yeah, no,” Catra replies without looking at her. “Why don’t you ask Huntara? I bet you could get her down to $75 and a bottle of whiskey.” 

To the other student, she says, “Now, you trying to cram the whole Renaissance or do you at least have one fucking century?”

––-

It’s chilly outside but Adora’s wrapped up in a nice coat that she bought from the thrift store last year and a scarf and mittens that Glimmer’s Aunt Casta knitted for her. At 7:49pm, Catra wanders out the back door. Her shift doesn’t end until 8:00pm but Adora figures that she won’t remind Catra of that today since she’s the one asking for a favor.

“Hi,” she starts, trying for that winning smile again.

Catra is, as always, unimpressed. “Gray. Just gonna wait back here and proposition every woman who walks out?”

She starts walking off immediately and Adora has to scurry to catch up.

“Please, Catra,” she begs. “It has to be you. You’re the only person who’s...believable.”

Catra comes to an abrupt stop.

“And why is that?” she asks. She looks so cute in her leather jacket. Not warm at all, but damn good.

“Are you cold? Here.” 

Adora immediately removes her scarf and ties it around Catra’s neck. Once it’s secured, she remembers Catra’s hatred of being touched.

“Sorry! It’s just freezing outside.”

“It’s fine,” Catra replies brusquely. Her eyes are angry but it’s hard to take that seriously with her wrapped up to her nose in Adora’s fluffy red scarf. She looks like a comfy kitty.

That thought must show on Adora’s face cause Catra immediately grumbles and starts walking away again.

Following, Adora rushes out, “It’s believable cause we spend time together already.” 

And cause she’s mentioned Catra to Glimmer and Bow plenty of times. Sea Hawk, the only other person in her circle who decided to go to Bright Moon University over a fancier school, had even seen them interact before at work. This would be an easy sell to her friends. 

And hopefully to Catra as well. As long as she doesn’t mention that Glimmer and Bow mistook her annoyance with Catra as an attraction. And that Sea Hawk had suggested, of his own accord, that Catra and Adora would make a cute couple.

Catra leads Adora into the campus coffee shop. She refuses to speak to Adora or even look her way until she finishes placing her order. When it’s time for payment, Catra turns to her expectantly.

With a grumble, Adora pays $5.21 for Catra’s overpriced fancy latte.

Adora goes to sit at an empty table while they wait, but she’s surprised when Catra doesn’t join her. Instead, Catra stops by her side, latte in hand.

“Look, Gray. What’s the actual deal?”

“I can’t take anymore setups,” Adora says.

“So tell your friends you’re not interested in dating and to leave you alone,” Catra replies, like this is obvious.

“I’ve tried! They feel bad for me. And they’re all busy-bodies who like to fix things. I just need a short distraction.”

“What happens when they ask about me later?” Catra points out. “You’re setting up a long-term lie. And you’re a shit liar, Gray. Remember that time I asked you to cover for me when I broke that computer. You panicked and broke the second one!”

“I’ll just say we stopped seeing each other but we’re friends,” she answers. “That’ll give me a few months at least.”

“We’re not even friends now.” She sounds almost upset.

That was mostly Catra’s fault. Adora had tried many times since meeting her on the 2nd day of freshman year. Catra wasn’t interested. It took months to even get Catra to say more than 2-word sentences to her.

“Of course we are,” Adora lies. She hopes that this lie isn’t as obvious as usual. “We’re on good enough terms that we can hang out from 9 to midnight in a room full of people and then leave the party.”

“Midnight” is all Catra repeats. Adora’s not quite sure what to make from the suddenly intense look in her eyes. “No. Nope, not interested. Maybe try the barista. She was giving you the look.”

Adora glances back quickly at the barista, just out of curiosity!, and that’s all the window that Catra needs to leave and immediately disappear.

––-

Keeping with their Christmas Day tradition, after everyone’s opened gifts with their families, all of Adora’s friends pile into Glimmer’s basement to hang out, play white elephant, and drink. Many of them are in their junior year at school already, scattered at universities across Etheria, since most of them were smart enough to escape Bright Moon. Being together like this is getting rarer but that just makes this holiday break seem even more important.

They spend most of the evening catching up and having a good time. Glimmer and Mermista devise a drinking game element for white elephant, which is a big hit. The hot item this year is a deeply absurd looking board game that Perfuma brought and everyone fights over it, ignoring Scorpia’s protests that this is not in the holiday spirit.

To include Adora more, everyone’s trying two things: asking about literally every girl at school that she’s ever mentioned, even once. And directing all shots in the game towards her, instead of at their partners like they usually do.

‘How’s Christy?’ ‘Don’t know. We only had one class together so I know nothing about her.’ ‘Next shot’s for Adora!’ Lather, rinse, repeat.

So she’s about three sheets to the wind when she gets a call from an unknown local number. That’s odd, a mysterious call on Christmas Day. Most everyone who calls Adora is literally in this room with her right now. She goes out to the patio to answer and is shocked to hear Catra’s raspy voice on the other end.

“Gray,” is all she says.

“Did you change your phone number? This isn’t the one I have for you.”

“Ugh,” Catra spits. “No, those assholes turned it off. On Christmas Day! Like, they couldn’t wait 24 hours to disconnect my fucking service! What if I had family to coordinate with or something! I don’t but they don’t fucking know my life!” She pauses to huff loudly. “Anyway, I’ll do it.”

It takes Adora a second to catch up to all this. “Uhhh…”

“Gods, Gray, are you drunk?!” Catra groans in frustration. “You better fucking remember this. And you better cancel with whatever desperate coed you got to take my place.”

“No one could ever take your place, Catra,” she mumbles out, sounding very drunk.

“Don’t make me regret this, Gray,” Catra tosses back immediately. “You’re giving me $250, I’m stealing some shit, and we’re never telling anyone else about this, got it? Send me the money now.”

“Yes, got it, will do,” Adora agrees. She’d honestly given up on this plan but she’s back in 100% if Catra’s on board. “Do you need to borrow clothes?”

Catra swears several times before answering. “Why didn’t you tell me this wasn’t a casual party?”

“It’s just like ‘dress to impress’ or something. They want me to wear a dress. So I have to go shopping anyway. You could come with.”

“Yeah, we’re not spending anymore time together than needed,” Catra replies. “Just pick me up a suit that matches whatever you’re wearing. I’ll come over early and get dressed there. I’ll text you my size as soon as I get my phone turned back on and you can send back the address.”

“Where are you calling from right now?”

“You’re asking all the wrong questions, Gray.”

Then it’s just the dial tone. She sends Catra the money immediately via an app, before returning inside to join her friends.

“Adora!” Scorpia cheers as soon as she reenters. “There you are. Who were you talking to buddy?”

“Oh,” she tries to play it cool. Pretend the blush is just from the cold. “Catra. We’re kinda dating now.” She moves back to her spot on the couch. “Is it my turn now?”

Adora tries to ignore the whole room’s intrigued attention on her.

––-

Catra comes over way too early. They had agreed upon 6. Catra’s on Mermista’s doorstep at 4:08. She’s in her leather jacket and jeans again, Adora’s scarf tied around her neck and a gym bag on her arm.

Thankfully, Perfuma is the one who’s cooking so she’s the first to answer the door. Adora’s able to run down the stairs, grab Catra, and rush her up to the guest room she’s staying in before Perfuma can ask too many questions. Adora locks the door just in case – Glimmer has a tendency to just walk right into unlocked rooms without alerting anyone inside first.

“I thought we said later,” Adora says, trying to keep her voice calm.

“I correctly guessed that you weren’t doing anything. Except panicking over this,” Catra replies. She drops her bag on the bed and removes her jacket. Underneath, the white tshirt she’s wearing is so worn and threadbare that it’s translucent in some places.

“You said I could crash here, right?” Catra asks, drawing Adora’s attention back up to her eyes.

Adora just nods. Speaking feels somehow harder right now.

“Cool.” Without another word, Catra jumps into the covers and immediately begins purring herself to sleep.

––-

At 7, Adora begrudgingly wakes Catra. For someone so grumpy, she’s the cutest sleeper. Rolled up in a ball, making little purrs and mewls.

She’s much less cute _awake_ , hissing and grumbling at Adora. The blonde explains where extra towels and things are but Catra doesn’t really listen, heading immediately into the bathroom.

“Uh, Glimmer usually does my makeup so we’ll have to take quick showers,” Adora yells through the door.

She hears Catra turn on the tub instead.

“Catra, please,” she pleads.

The door opens. Catra’s not wearing clothes, just a towel that’s definitely not the full-size bath towels that Adora tried to point out in the linen closet.

“Here’s what’s gonna happen,” Catra begins. “I’m gonna take a bath. A _nice, long_ bath. You can wait until I’m done or shower in one of the hundred other bathrooms that are probably in this huge ass house. Then I’ll do your stupid makeup cause I’m betting I’ve got a better eye than Glitter and will take a hell of a lot less time. We’ll get dressed quickly cause disheveled is kinda my brand and then we’ll be ready. We don’t need a schedule for a party, Gray.”

Catra goes back to the tub without closing the door. Judging by the sloshing that Adora hears next, she jumps right in before it’s full.

Catra then lets out a deep, low groan that makes Adora so flushed that she can feel it from her ears to her chest.

“That’s fine,” Adora replies, voice oddly strained. “We need to work on our story too.”

“And rules,” Catra adds. “You like rules.” She turns the water off. “Fine. Come in. We’ll just do it now.”

“Um. Are you sure?” Adora asks, tentatively.

“We’re fake girlfriends. I’ll be fine if you see a bit of boob.”

Adora enters, using a hand to shield her eyes. There’s no safe place to be in this bathroom so she sits cross-legged by the sink and turns her back to the tub. The room smells like Catra used a whole bottle of Mermista’s lavender bubble bath.

“What have you got so far, Gray?”

“Well,” this is what she really needs Catra for, “My friends are nosy so they’ll definitely ask you a few questions. At least about how we got together, since everyone thinks I’m oblivious and emotionally stunted.”

Catra laughs heartily at that. Maybe a bit too much, actually, considering that they don’t know each other too well.

Adora chooses to ignore that and move forward. “We can be honest and say we met freshman year. They'll ask when we started dating and we'll say-”

Catra finishes, “When the new semester started. You came back with that undercut and all I wanted to do was feel it against the inside of my thighs.”

Like she probably planned, Adora gasps. “Catra! You can't say that to my friends!” 

There’s the sound of the water sloshing and suddenly the scent of lavender is way closer to Adora.

“Can I say it to you?” Catra whispers, very suggestively, right next to the blonde’s ear.

Catra _had_ gotten more talkative after Adora debuted her new haircut, having chopped off a bunch of the top and gotten the bottom half shaved low. It was probably not a good idea to add anymore complications to this already complicated plan by thinking about that.

“You’ll come up with something different, right?” Adora tries to confirm, shifting a little further away.

The tub sloshes around again.

“Fine. Are you gonna be no fun all night?”

“I’m very fun!” Adora argues. She’s not. Catra reminds her enough of that at work. “We’re going to have a lot of fun tonight. Once my friends are placated.”

Catra responds, “Don’t plan on getting sloppy drunk by the way. I’m coming back up here and passing out as soon as you start to slur. I wasn’t hired to be a babysitter.”

“Noted. And same. What about touching? Holding hands a little seems reasonable. Nothing in the bathing suit area, obviously.”

“Fair. I should warn you that I only swim nude.”

Adora wants to glance back to make sure she’s joking but remembers the whole thing where Catra is naked in the tub in the same room as her.

“What about midnight?” Catra asks. Her voice is very even and mild.

Adora hopes against hope that she sounds the same when she answers, “Peck on the cheek?”

For several long moments, all she hears is the sound of water.

Finally, Catra responds, “Let’s just sneak up here ten minutes before and avoid it altogether.”

Adora nods. She can live with that.

––-

“How is this not a fancy party?” Catra asks annoyed. 

She’s in the new suit that Adora bought for her, a thin-cut maroon number with a black satin shirt. The only shoes Catra brought were her leather boots. She’s pissed at Adora about that but honestly it works as a look.

“It’s very casual! We just dress up a little.”

Adora’s suit looks nice. _She’s_ awkward but the outfit is good, especially with her haircut. Glimmer and Perfuma had tried to talk her into several very ugly dresses but she was a bit emboldened by Catra’s choice and decided that they’d be cute in suits together. That’s something couples might do. Adora’s was black with a gold shirt though, so they weren’t too matchy-matchy.

The plan was to return both outfits the next weekend but Adora’s genuinely considering keeping hers. It’s kinda the first thing in a long time that feels like it’s just for her. Well, that and the haircut. It’s a good feeling to stop trying to fit herself into everyone’s expectations of her for a little while. 

Catra’s much quicker, and has a much less heavier hand, when applying makeup to Adora’s face. She’s rougher too, but she kinda has to be since Adora won’t sit still. Having Catra that close to her face for the first time makes her anxious and fidgety and the feline is pissed the whole time. Once, she gets too close to Adora’s lips and the blonde audibly gulps. Catra just smirks, very pleased. After that, she’s a bit more gentle but her hands linger a lot longer too.

When they’re ready and it’s nearing time for the party to start, Catra lies down on the bed and turns on the tv.

“We’re going to be late,” Adora points out, anxious yet again.

“Yeah, Gray, that’s the point.”

––-

Now nearly an hour late for the party, they descend downstairs. Glimmer and Bow had come by a couple times to retrieve them but Catra had yelled back that they were busy in a way that made Adora sweat all over. In reality, she was just watching Catra watch a Housewives rerun.

Unsurprisingly, Glimmer’s on them immediately. She looks a mix of exasperated and excited. Catra doesn’t know Glimmer at all but as soon as she sees the girl’s face, her hand goes to Adora’s lower back to direct her in the opposite direction.

“Nope, crazy eyes – 12:00,” she whispers quietly, moving Adora towards the bar. 

Catra starts making them drinks immediately, not bothering to ask Adora’s preference. They both get whiskey cokes. Adora hates whiskey. And coke. But Catra’s doing this as a favor – and also being _paid_ , she keeps reminding herself – so Adora won’t complain. The flavor is awful though.

“Adora!” Glimmer yells, suddenly next to them.

The blonde splutters into her drink. Catra hisses and all of her fur stands up. She turns to snap at Glimmer but Adora jumps between them first.

“Glimmer!” she says, pulling her friend into a hug. “Catra, this is my _bestie_ , Glimmer. The one I talk about all the time.”

Even to her ears, her voice sounds weird. She truly is terrible at lying.

Thankfully, Catra’s not.

“Right, Glimmer,” she replies. “Fancy school. Boyfriend. Nice parents. Right? Nice to meet you. I’m Catra.” She smiles so broadly that Adora can see both of her fangs. “Can I make you a drink?”

Catra’s being nice. Adora’s never seen Catra be nice. Honestly, she didn’t think it was within her wheelhouse. But there, smiling in her suit and pulling Glimmer in with her eyes, is Catra and Glimmer is absolutely eating the attention up.

“Of course!” she squeaks. “Um, whatever you’re having.”

Glimmer glances at Adora while Catra’s making the cocktail. It will probably be another whiskey coke so no one should get their hopes up. But Glimmer’s eyes are saying ‘wow’, which is nice.

“What were you two up to for so long?” Glimmer asks. Subtlety has never been her thing.

“Just catching each other up about our holidays,” Catra replies. It’s kinda true. Adora talked about her Christmas with the Moons while Catra charged her phone and offered no response at all. “Yours sounded nice.”

Glimmer’s a bit disappointed to not hear any details of an actually fun activity. She thanks Catra when the drink is passed over and Adora’s surprised to see that it’s red and looks like it has more than 2 ingredients. She’s more surprised when Glimmer says it’s delicious.

“Oh, I should grab Bow!” she announces and rushes away.

Adora moves closer to Catra. “Wait, do you actually listen to me when I ramble?”

“Those were all educated guesses, Gray,” she returns. “ _No one_ listens when you ramble.”

Bow receives a similar introduction, Catra says some vague things about him to pretend that she remembers anything, and he asks the same question about what made them late. This then happens with everyone in their group. Mermista, who’s a lot more blunt when asking what they got up to in her guestroom but is charmed when Catra basically hits on her right in front of Adora. Scorpia, who immediately takes a liking to Catra and wants to be her new best friend. Sea Hawk, who apparently has a class with Catra and gets mercilessly mocked by her. Spinnerella and Netossa, who are polite enough _not_ to inquire about their lateness but give Adora a _look_ that makes her blush for no reason. Perfuma is oddly the only one missing.

“Time for another drink?” Catra asks Adora. “I saw how you were lusting after what I made Sparkles.”

“Glimmer,” Adora corrects.

“I’m only meeting them one night. I don’t have space in my head for 10 other names. In two weeks, I’m gonna be up to my eyeballs in dumb freshmen looking for info about the Russian Revolution.”

“Do you know anything about the Russian Revolution?” Adora asks.

“I’ve forgotten more than you’ll ever know about the Russian Revolution, Gray,” Catra replies, with the kind of intensity that she always brings to a challenge about her proficiency on a random subject. “But this is a party and I don’t need to shame your paltry knowledge base. So, drink?”

Adora nods and Catra moves back to the bar to begin mixing something together. More folks are showing up now, other kids that they grew up with or know from around town. It’s honestly more people than Adora wants to deal with, which is part of why a date was a necessity. Honestly, she’s a bit surprised that Catra didn’t ask why she chose such an introvert for this mission.

A couple people away, Adora catches Perfuma’s voice coming towards her. This is great cause once everyone’s met Catra, they can get a couple quick awkward questions out of the way, hide upstairs, and be done here.

But Perfuma’s saying to Netossa, “She came in wearing Adora’s scarf. That’s practically a _promise ring_ for Adora.” 

The blonde desperately hopes Catra can’t hear it over the party. She’s further away. But she also has super good hearing with her cute cat ears. Maybe she won’t know to listen out for Perfuma’s voice?

Adora glances over and Catra is pouring out two drinks, smirking widely at her. She moves closer to Adora, passing over the cup.

“A promise ring, Gray?” she whispers. “I didn’t realize things were so serious between us. Isn’t it a bit soon?”

Adora shrugs, like this isn’t affecting her greatly. “Well, we’ve already got the suits so what are we waiting for?”

Catra laughs. “Only you would propose marriage instead of trying to get me into bed.”

This is the moment that Perfuma reaches them, already way too delighted. She doesn’t even wait for an introduction before she launches into asking Catra a bunch of personal questions about her chart, her studies, her favorite things about Adora.

Catra takes all the questions in stride, shooting back quick answers, up until the last one. For some reason, it drives Catra to glance nervously at her date.

“You don’t have to answer that,” Adora offers.

Perfuma’s eyes widen a bit behind her tight smile.

“No, it’s fine,” Catra replies. To Perfuma, she says, “I just don’t need ‘little miss hotshot’ realizing that she might actually be desirable to more people.”

Adora makes a sound in protest. Mostly at the nickname. She doesn’t really understand the rest of it. Catra just laughs at her, like usual.

“I mean, she’s not too bad under this suit,” Catra replies, with slightly less of a suggestive tone than earlier in the bath. “And she’s smart. Not as smart as me but someone has to be 2nd best. Mostly, she’s just sweet.”

Catra pinches her cheek like a baby.

“Well, I can certainly tell what Adora sees in you, Catra,” Perfuma responds. “How did you two meet?”

Adora wonders if Perfuma volunteered to do this or if their friends elected her. Cause suddenly they all appear, listening intently. Catra seems caught off guard. For a moment, Adora worries that she might be too overwhelmed to reply. And Adora can’t lie for shit, as Catra has pointed out.

But, slowly Catra starts up, “It’s not a thrilling story really. It was-what?- second week of class? I was on shelving duty at the library, back before they decided that Adora and I were somehow the appropriate people for customer service. So I was re-shelving books but they kept disappearing and showing up on all the wrong shelves. And it turned out that someone,” she motions with her head at Adora, “misread the assignments and thought that _she_ was on shelving duty. So I lost my temper and screamed at her in front of the whole library.”

Adora immediately begins laughing uncontrollably. She’d actually forgotten about that. It was a couple weeks into them knowing each other and Catra never acknowledging her ever. 

At the time, it was kinda frightening except Catra’s voice hadn’t quite dropped as low at that point. So Adora just had an angry baby kitty screeching in her face about the dewey decimal system, while she was distracted counting the freckles on the other girl’s cheeks. But then Catra was too short to actually reach the books that Adora had messed up and had another fit. Adora was forced to agree to be Catra’s assistant for the rest of the month. They barely spoke after that encounter, besides for Catra to give directions and be very condescending about the organizing system that Adora still doesn’t understand to this day.

None of her friends are laughing. 

Catra lets her embarrass herself for awhile before finally saying, “I swear, if you’re thinking about my voice or my inability to get those books down, you better sleep with one eye open.”

At the idea of sharing a bed with Catra, Adora immediately stops laughing. Catra just grins wickedly, like she can read the thought on Adora’s flushed face.

“That’s not even when we met,” Adora teases, trying to regain control of this situation. “How shameful that I made such a little impression on you.”

Catra genuinely looks confused at not knowing something. It’s one of the best/worst things about Catra, her expectation that she’s the smartest person in the room. If someone knows something she doesn’t, Adora’s seen her react with either great interest or deep bewilderment. She looks like she’s racking her brain now to figure out what Adora’s talking about.

“Orientation,” Adora helps. “Second day. We got matched together to ask each other random questions.”

“Oh, that doesn’t count!” Catra replies with a relieved smile. “That was so stupid. You asked me some rambling questions about stars and the exact street name and number where I could find my favorite one. It was ridiculous. Anyway, that was a dub cause I was so nervous being around you that I barely even _spoke_ . It took me _two weeks_ t-”

She stops herself abruptly, face clearly struggling to cover up the sincerity in what she almost admitted and play it off.

Adora isn’t sure what’s come over herself but she smirks smugly at Catra, excited to feel like the powerful one for a change.

“My Gods. You didn’t talk to me cause you had a crush on me?” To Adora’s surprise, her voice comes out low and smooth. Like a person with confidence and social skills. It almost sounds like Catra purrs in response. Until Adora adds, “That’s really embarrassing for you.”

“Shut it, Gray.”

“Is that why you couldn’t talk to me for more than 20 seconds for so long?”

“No, that’s cause you’re insufferable.”

But really, so much of Catra’s odd behavior was starting to line up now.

“Is that why you kept trying to avoid being alone with me when we did that group project?”

“Asked and answered, counsel. Move along.”

“Is that wh-”

She’s shut up by Catra’s hand covering her mouth. Catra has to get very close to do this without accidentally slapping everyone in the party.

“Don’t embarrass yourself by saying anything else you’ll regret, Adora Marlena Gray.”

“Is that why you know my _middle name_?!” is muffled enough that no one seems to hear it. 

Which is good, Adora realizes, cause someone she’s dating would know her middle name. Someone who she paid for a date, would not. She wouldn’t want to tip her friends off with that.

But. Adora’s unclear if she and Catra are still pretending. Those things felt very confusing and very real.

Her friends chuckling pulls Adora from her thoughts. She’d honestly forgot that they were there this whole time, drawn into Catra’s teasing smile and devious eyes. Catra’s maybe genuinely a little bashful, judging by her lowered ears, but it seems like she’s having a good time.

“How’d you go from total disasters to dating?” Glimmer asks, showing no concern for the moment that she’s ruining.

Catra’s eyes light up, to Adora’s horror. The only thing Catra loves more than being correct or mortifying Adora is revenge.

She removes her hand to turn to the group.

“This godsdamn haircut. I took one look at that undercut and-”

She cuts off by Adora’s hand on her mouth. Or really, near her mouth. Adora misses cause Catra’s super fast and the fang in her pinky makes her yelp so loudly that the rest of Catra’s sentence is washed out. Mostly. Spinnerella and Mermista chuckle like they definitely heard everything.

“I can’t believe you bit me!”

“Really?” Catra shoots back. “That sounds _exactly_ like me.”

This tussle somehow ends with their free hands around each other, leaning together to catch their breath.

“Okay, fine, we get it,” Glimmer says, pretending to sound bored. “You’re cute and super into each other. Gross.”

Again, Adora remembers that all of her annoying friends are watching and overly invested. Catra seems to notice too cause she lowers her ears again and hides her face by taking a long sip of her drink.

“We’ll leave you two alone now,” Bow says politely, with the brightest smile. He practically has little stars in his eyes. “Let’s go set up beer pong. It was amazing to meet you, Catra.”

He begins dragging the rest of them away.

“Remember to keep the fun PG, kids,” Mermista warns. “No heads between thighs and all.”

Adora hears Glimmer yell, “What?!” as she pulled away.

When she’s sure they’re alone, Adora turns back to Catra. She’s pretending to not notice that they’re still holding each other.

“That went well, right?” Adora whispers.

“It was perfect, Gray,” Catra responds. “They’ll be heartbroken when I break up with you.”

“No, I’m fake-breaking up with you.”

“No one will believe that, Gray. You pull someone as great as me, you gotta lock that down.”

“Is that so?” she asks, tilting her head closer to Catra’s. In response, Catra just takes another small sip.

––-

Around 11:30, Sea Hawk and Scorpia finally talk Catra into playing beer pong. She refuses to drink the beers, saying it’s for ‘plebes’. There’s a cute, younger girl with her hair dyed pink who is having trouble keeping her eyes off of Catra. The feline notices almost immediately and flirts with this girl until she agrees to be a proxy for all of Catra’s beers.

Adora is not jealous. But figures a jealous girlfriend would show Catra some attention for validation so she does just that. As soon as Catra’s done talking to the girl and announcing her intentions to her opponents, Adora goes up behind her and wraps her arms around Catra’s waist. She's smart enough to whisper ‘behind you’ first so she doesn’t get flayed.

She’s not surprised when Catra whispers, “Jealous?”

“Just acting like a date would,” Adora whispers back.

“Kiss for luck?” Catra says much louder.

Great. Now everyone crowded around them is looking. Adora cops out by placing a loud kiss on Catra’s furry cheek. The crowd is not impressed.

––-

So it’s kinda too late to back out now. The beer pong gets competitive and Adora doesn’t think Catra actually knows how to back down from a challenge. She ignores multiple warnings at 11:45, 11:50, 11:55, 11:58. Adora considers just leaving her there at midnight but that would be rude. Her friends would be so judgy. Scorpia would probably cry.

Adora stays, thinking the whole time that this is a horrible idea. Catra doesn’t seem to realize what’s happening until her opponents stop playing and starting counting down.

She whips around to Adora quickly and tries to maneuver them into a dark corner.

“You’ve only had the two drinks I made you, right?” Catra asks in a hurry.

Adora just nods.

“Cool. Me too.”

Catra switches the sides they’re on and the momentum, and the overwhelming feeling of not knowing what the fuck is happening here, forces Adora to push her up against the wall.

“Sorry,” Adora mumbles out quickly.

“Just kiss me, dummy.”

Moments before the countdown reaches 1, Adora presses her lips to Catra’s.

Adora considers herself a very grounded person. She doesn’t use a lot of hyperbole. She’s very realistic.

So she is not overstating it when she thinks that she’s never felt more intensity and electricity just in one fucking kiss in her entire life.

They kiss long after the cheering has ended, still hidden away in their private corner. Catra moves so slowly and intently, like she’s savoring the feel of Adora’s lips on hers.

Adora feels claws work their way up from her waist to the back of her hair, rubbing softly before they scratch lightly. She thinks of Catra’s comment, the one about _thighs_ , and shivers against Catra’s body. Her date pulls back slightly.

“I can sheathe these, you know?” Catra says, voice dripping with implications.

“I know. You just keep them out to scare people off and drive me out of my mind by tapping.” Adora doesn’t bother opening her eyes.

Catra snickers to herself. “Anyway, I’m just saying. I can sheathe them. If needed.”

Adora opens her eyes to see if Catra has a specific point she’d like to make or if she’s just teasing. Except that was a mistake because Catra’s eyes are so intense that they almost startle her.

“We’ve accomplished all our goals, right?” Catra continues. “Want to go upstairs? We can watch tv...or whatever.”

Adora pulls her around the perimeter of the room, hiding behind drunken bodies until they make it to the stairs.

Inside the room, Adora thinks it’s a good idea to start hanging her suit up. It’ll get wrinkled while they’re sitting on the bed, watching tv. And doing nothing else.

“Want to hang up your suit? I mean, no pressure. Worst case scenario, if it rumples, I can just tell the clerk that it was a holiday gift and had been folded in a box for months. They still have to take it back, right?”

“Gray, how many times do I have to tell you to shut it?” She glances back and Catra’s already in her underwear, looking at her expectantly.

In response, she scoops Catra up and lowers her to the bed.

––-

Adora’s alarm for her run goes off as usual. She’s about to reflexively shut it off when she hears a whispered ‘fuck!’ She shoots awake, struggling to make herself alert, to find Catra standing and mostly fully dressed.

“Hi,” Adora whispers. 

She silences the phone. There’s a silly instinct to pull the sheet up to cover herself but Catra’s already seen everything.

“Mornin’, Gray.”

Catra finishes putting on her boots. She doesn’t _look_ like a person with serious regrets about last night. But Adora’s not sure what that would look like. Fortunately, she’s never really seen that look before, after something like this. Gods, will this be the first time? Her first ‘this was a horrible mistake’ conversation? Then she’ll have to work with Catra after that. With her luck, they’ll have more classes together next semester, since Catra always refuses to tell Adora her schedule.

“Hey, dummy, stop freaking out. I just have places to be.”

Catra straddles her, unconcerned about her boots on the bed, and leans down for a deep, lingering kiss.

“I can’t believe you brought someone you actually like into this fucking ruse,” she teases with a smile. “This really only could’ve gone one of two ways. You’re lucky I’m so fucking cool that I’m not turned off by what an idiot you are. Obviously, I’m keeping your money, though. Consider it an appearance fee.”

“You’re really into me, aren’t you?” Adora smirks. “Have you been into me for two years and not said anything? Well, I guess you admitted last night that you were literally so intimidated by how much I turned you on that you couldn’t speak to me.”

“My Gods, did you even hear yourself last night? You sounded so fucking _smitten_. I was actually ashamed for you.”

They plunge into a kiss that leaves them both panting by the end. With a frustrated groan, Catra pulls away and stands.

“I gotta go,” she says. She doesn’t really sound like she wants to leave though.

“What are your plans today?” Adora asks, hoping Catra will throw her a bone and say they can meet up later.

“I don’t really have any. Just kinda bumming around this break.”

Adora ignores how ridiculous that is. Either she has plans and, like usual, doesn’t feel like she needs to tell Adora. Or she actually is not rushing off to anything, just rushing in her typical way.

So Adora just comes right out with it. “I want to see you.”

“You will, Gray,” she replies with a smirk. “Promise.”

She throws her bag over her shoulder, moving towards the door.

“You know, kisses at midnight and their meaning and all.”

**Author's Note:**

> if you're into this (and i hope you are), i've got a longer, ongoing story called ["wicked games"](https://archiveofourown.org/works/27967145) that's honestly nothing like this. except all the pining and anxiety and catra's teasing.
> 
> i'm working on another story that was **supposed** to be short and is quickly getting away from me. but it's basically the adult version of these same two dummies snarking and freaking out around each other.


End file.
